Democrats’ Biggest Wins Are in Statehouses

Forget Congress. State legislatures are where real progressive action is most likely to happen.

By Bryce Covert

Ms. Covert is a contributor at The Nation and a contributing opinion writer.

Nov. 8, 2018

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On Tuesday, Democrats made strides in a number of statehouses, including Colorado's.CreditCreditJoe Daniel Price/Moment, via Getty Images

Democrats pulled off a significant victory on Tuesday night. No, it wasn’t taking back the House in Congress. It’s what they did in state legislatures around the country.

Democrats made strides in a number of statehouses. They seized control of seven legislative chambers, flipping the State Senates in Colorado, Maine, and New York; the House in Minnesota; and both chambers in New Hampshire. Connecticut’s Senate, previously evenly split, is now held by Democrats. They broke Republican supermajorities in Michigan and Pennsylvania’s Senates and both chambers in North Carolina.

Democrats also flipped seven governorships on Tuesday. They now completely control all three statehouse branches in 13 states and Washington, D.C., compared to the seven statehouses where they held trifecta control before Election Day.

These victories arguably hold the same, if not more, heft than the inroads Democrats made in Congress. At the federal level, legislative achievements have ground to nearly a complete halt in recent years.

At the same time, progressive goals like a higher minimum wage and guaranteed paid leave have only been realized at the state level. Congress hasn’t raised the minimum wage since 2007, keeping it stuck at $7.25 an hour for more than a decade, but 13 state legislatures and D.C. have passed their own higher wages since 2014. Currently, 29 states and D.C. have wage floors above the federal backstop. This year alone, these increases boosted pay for over 15 million workers.

The same pattern has appeared for paid sick leave. The Democrats’ congressional bill to ensure all workers in the country can take paid time off if they or their family members fall ill has never moved forward. But since 2011, 11 states have passed paid sick leave legislation to do just that for their residents, along with 19 cities and three counties. Similarly, there is no federal guarantee of paid family leave for the arrival of a new child or a serious illness or disability, and a bill to establish a program countrywide hasn’t advanced. But six states and D.C. have set up their own programs in the meantime.

So while Democrats in the House will now most likely act as a bulwark against a number of Republican policy goals, the real action will continue to be at the state level.

Democrats should push further to raise wages and benefits for American workers. If the Supreme Court weakens Roe v. Wade, Democratic-controlled legislatures can enshrine women’s reproductive freedom in their own laws. They can address climate change through carbon pricing and renewable energy mandates. States can also protect voting rights, through automatic voter registration and other reforms, reduce mass incarceration by getting rid of cash bail and needlessly punitive policies and curb gun violence with gun control legislation.

All of these priorities, which Democrats struggle to advance at the federal level, can still make headway in the states.

Democrats will also need to reverse the damage done over the last decade. After the 2010 midterms, Republicans seized majority control of 11 state legislatures. These were the states that enacted some of the harshest budget cuts in the wake of the recession while often cutting taxes at the same time, leading to disproportionate drops in their public sector work forces. While many states had to pare back their budgets to respond to the pain of the recession, some have since bounced back. Most states controlled by Democrats had restored education spending by 2016, for example, while only five controlled by Republicans did the same. A number of Republican controlled states, such as Arizona, Kansas, North Carolina, and Oklahoma, decided to cut taxes instead of getting education funding back to normal.

State legislatures will also be in charge of redrawing congressional districts after the 2020 census. With their 2010 state-level Republican victories, the party was able to gerrymander a number of districts in ways that still keep Democrats at a political disadvantage. Having gained legislative ground will give Democrats the power to potentially undo some of the harm or at least give them more of a say in how districts are drawn.

Democrats still have a lot of work to do. Republicans still hold 56 percent of state legislative seats and control 65 chambers. But Tuesday’s victories show that Democrats have the power to change those numbers if they put their money and effort into these races. It’s crucial that they continue to do so. Republicans are certainly paying close attention to who holds control of the country’s statehouses. If Democrats don’t do the same, they cede enormous policy power to the other party.

Bryce Covert is a contributor at The Nation and a contributing opinion writer.